On-Season Week 17

WEEK 17

Week 16 saw the roundup rise to 7 shows, but Week 17 sees us dip back down to only 6; Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Bull and Scorpion drop out, to be replaced by Elementary and NCIS LA. Among this week's episodes, Conviction reopens the case of an imprisoned serial killer when a "copycat" emerges, Operational-Psychologist-turned-proficient-deep-cover-field-agent Nate Getz returns on NCIS LA's first episode for three weeks, and Masi Oka makes his final appearance in Hawaii Five-0.
   Apologies for no pictures this week, a few technical difficulties are keeping me from uploading any.

Conviction - 1x11 "Black Orchid"

"A woman is murdered in an identical manner to the infamous Black Orchid Killer's murders in 2006, so CIU questions whether this is a copycat or a man was wrongly convicted."

Can you trust the word of a man imprisoned for a serial killing spree who fits at least two of three criteria recognised as common traits in serial killers? Apparently, if you're Tess Larson, you can, and with the return of BOK Tess (and Emily Kinney) gets a chance to shine. Her aunt's murder generated an interest in serial killers, and her constant belief in profiling forces CIU to take her seriously when she suggests the man originally convicted, Clark Sims, is innocent.
   Starting off a CIU case with a fresh murder lent the episode a surprisingly refreshing procedural feel (given CIU is structured completely differently). The episode also managed to have some very clever answers for the incontrovertible proof that condemned Sims, such as his fingerprint being on the window of one of the original BOK victims because he worked at a delivery and installation company who had delivered and installed it five months before the murder spree. That's clever stuff.
   In the end, CIU and NYPD Homicide run through only really one other suspect before settling on the witness, Donald Cutler, as the real BOK; retribution for his failed murder attempt ten years ago leads to Cutler's death before he could be tried, but exonerates Sims.
   Elsewhere, Conviction probably concluded Tess's arc by having Tess mention that Matty, who after previously storming off when she revealed it was her testimony that wrongly convicted him of her aunt's murder, had now forgiven her. There's no feeling of resolution here since it's such a big part of her character's drive that has been relegated to a single line of speech, but since I was already doubtful the show would include him in any further episodes I'm happy to settle for what we got.
   And finally, shoutout to Hayes and Wallace's cute struggle to find a common ground beyond work - which adorably failed.

   VIEWERS: 2.68m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 0.5

VERDICT: Conviction ticks another "thing it had to do" off its list with a serial killer episode, and does so with stupendous execution. 8.5/10

Elementary - 5x11 "Be My Guest"

"Sherlock stumbles onto a kidnapper, but NYPD struggle to find the location of his victim. Meanwhile, Shinwell struggles to stick at his confidential informant training."

A short cold open-esque "here's how we caught you" scene with a murderer had Sherlock's mind wandering, until they landed upon a man, Ryan Decker, looking less than pleased at the police presence; Sherlock proficiently read Decker's lips enough to suspect a crime, but was less proficient at stealthily stealing Decker's phone, although in doing so he did learn of a kidnap victim.
   That cold open-esque way of stumbling onto another serious crime was a structural treat, and the rest of the plot delivered as well. But it was a much darker episode in tone than Elementary is used to, with the villains' crimes stemming from a past involving disturbing pornography and a traumatic childhood. I say villains plural - the disappointing element of the reveal was that Decker's long-assumed accomplice was actually his ex-wife, who had the same criminal tendencies as he and, while they were nemeses and held separate victims, they also took care of each others' victims. ("Took care" as in quite literally, rather than the dark subtext which is the natural assumption, which Elementary played on well.)

Decker restraining his victim

   Joan was more removed from the investigation than usual as Shinwell's deflated attitude to practising the skills she and Sherlock were teaching him kept her sidelined, as she ensured he did actually start to bother. Shinwell again proves to be the weakest part of a plot, and in sidelining Joan Watson he was even unhelpful to the show's primary dynamic.
   Word to Sherlock's almost flawless recollection of details pertaining to each case: although his ability to identify any brand of tobacco is accepted canon, the process of elimination by which he identified a body of water was a little too unbelievable, giving the feeling that the writers feel secure enough in Sherlock's character that whenever they need him to know trivia, it will pass by the audiences because ... you know ... it's Sherlock. Not so my writing friends, not so.
   VIEWERS: 5.15m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 0.7

VERDICT: Sherlock and Joan were separated for most of the episode (especially some crucial points of it) leaving that critical dynamic wanting. Even with that, they somehow managed to forget Bell is a main cast character. 8/10

Hawaii Five-0 - 7x13 "Ua ho'i ka 'opua i Awalua / The Clouds Always Return to Alawua"

"Max Bergman prepares to leave Five-0."

Well that was emotional. I'm not going to talk about the murder plot because it just didn't matter in the end: Masi Oka's final episode as a regular on Hawaii Five-0 eclipsed the entire murder plot. Max Bergman was such an important character to the show, and what the writers gave us was a truly fitting tribute. While Max cleared out his belongings, Jerry raided his daily journals, and in doing so treated us to a few fond memories from the past years, such as Max helping McGarrett when he was a fugitive and the first time Max asked his wife Sabrina out. And then, at the end, there was a long-ass goodbye scene intercut with flashes of even more memories, a number of these flashes being Max dressed in his characteristic Hallowe'en outfits. I must admit, the scene came off a bit too emotional - after all, Max isn't dead - but I think it lends a certain finality to the character that if Masi Oka ever came back to guest star the whole point of the played-up goodbye speeches would be lost. So if you love it, let it go.
   Mahalo.

   VIEWERS: 9.54m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 1.1
   (Ticks downwards, which I didn't expect for Max's goodbye episode. But still solid.)

All our Five-0 cast with some friends too.

VERDICT: Max's time at Five-0 closes, opening a new chapter for the rest of the series. A good window into past times. 8/10

Incorporated - 1x07 "Executables"

"Julian investigates Roger Caplan's disappearance. Ben's new interrogation technique is tested on an Inazagi employee in order for Spiga to retrieve the location of a gene splicer crucial to crop-growing in the deserts. Theo is forced deeper into Terrence's organisation."

The threads of a well-paced series are coming together slowly. Everclear, Ben's new interrogation technique which effectively reads people's minds, is trialled by Spiga on an Inazagi employee (Mr Brill) who knows the location of Sanjay Mirage, a gene splicer in Inazagi custody who can provide a method of effectively growing crops in deserts. With this technology, Spiga could topple Inazagi. Eventually, the location of Sanjay is uncovered and a team assembled, with Ben using Mr Brill to prepare safe passage for himself and Elena, and Hendrick to help remove any memory of his past as Aaron!
   Speaking of Elena though, Julian's investigation into Caplan's disappearance led to two more game-changing moments. Firstly, his belief that all these odd occurrences creating a 40th floor vacancy benefit Ben more than anyone, which puts him at the top of Julian's suspect pool. And secondly, a brief meeting between Ben and Elena, who is now aware Ben is working to free her from her sex slave role.
   Laura's conscience led her into trouble: directly after her flashback episode revealing how she was traumatised in the Red Zones, a visit to another Red Zone leads to her kidnap, but a surprise twist has her agreeing to perform duties as a doctor for the bad guy after she sympathises with him.
   This was just a well-timed episode: nearly everything that has occurred in the last 6 episodes was strung together in a way that opens up a stunning end to the first season: a Spiga-Inazagi war just as Ben's efforts to rescue Elena begin to crumble. How this will all pan out I cannot predict.
   Frustratingly, Theo's plot remains largely on the outside, but whether it will marry up near the end is another question. Props to the guest star from Peter Outerbridge.

   VIEWERS: 0.499m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 0.14
   (Solid ticks upwards - great for the show)

VERDICT: This was just very, very good writing, bringing together everything so far in what will be looked back on as the game-changing episode of the season. 9/10

MacGyver - 1x13 "Large Blade"

"Jack and Mac are trapped in an Afghanistan forest when their helicopter crashes and their prisoner escapes."

Patricia Thornton's outing as a mole doesn't seem like it will have any further bearing on the series, which seems a little disappointing. There's still more to Nikki's story so there should be more to Thornton's I feel, and if the MacGyver writers are choosing not to loop Thornton into the upcoming storyline then they better do it right.
   In the meantime, a stop in Afghanistan to recover a terrorist goes wrong when the helicopter is shot out of the air. With the pilot, Cynthia, injured, the terrorist, Victor, escaped, and no working phone to call for help, Mac and Jack use a variety of skills to bide time while Phoenix search for them. Which is Riley and Bozer's job back in LA. Interestingly, this is the first time we've really seen more than just our core team inside the Phoenix HQ, whereas today the search for Mac and Jack had a team of data analysts scouring Afghani wilderness for them.

Matty the Hun arrives at Phoenix
(Apologies for the poor quality screenshot)

   The main subplot thread was the announcement of Thornton's replacement: Matty Webber. Or, as Jack refers to her, "Matty the Hun". You know when someone has a nickname like that it can't be good, and in the final scene Matty's arrival puts our team on their toes. She's no-nonsense, strict and won't take even the smallest thing that she doesn't like, such as Mac playing with his paperclips. I like Matty and I like Meredith Eaton who plays her (I feel like Matty is going to be very much like a ruder Hetty from NCIS LA), but I think she might rub a few fans the wrong way. Either way, I'm looking forward to the next episode, where we properly see her in charge for the very first time.

   VIEWERS: 7.72m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 1.1
   (Small ticks downwards, but remaining in a stable area)

VERDICT: The episode plot was bogged down by typical stuck-in-the-middle-of-nowhere tropes, but the hyped-up arrival of Matty the Hun rescued the episode a little. 7.5/10

NCIS: Los Angeles - 8x12 "Kulinda"

"Sam goes undercover in a security firm named Kulinda, when one of its staff is killed."

I felt it in season 7, and I've been saying it throughout season 8: NCIS LA, while still a decent show, is in a bit of a creative rut. Episode structure, character development, as time has passed - as with any show - its quality has decreased. The Sunday at 8pm slot has rejuvenated the show's ratings, but nothing, until now, has actually given me hope that NCIS LA can rejuvenate its writing quite as brilliantly. The Callen and Anna relationship can do just that. A proper relationship for Callen - and by which I mean one that gets considerable airtime - has never been explored by the writers.
   I would like to see Anna shifted to main cast status, but that's highly unlikely. Fortunately, her ATF position (and now her relationship with Callen) will allow her to slip in and out of plotlines whenever the writers feel like having her. And in finding that critical combination, they've found a way to explore new ground at a point where the show was feeling a little repetitive.

Callen and Anna (first kiss?)

   Also, it's time to bring Nate home. In the most uniquely puzzling character tNCIS LA is now at a point where it could use that unpredictability to its advantage, even having Nate recur and drawing out arcs for everyone with his work would benefit the show, especially in the short-term. There may even be room, what with Granger's deteriorating health and Hetty's regular absences.
reatment I've seen on a TV show, Operational Psychologist Nate Getz has gone from a main cast member in season 1, to departing after the second episode of season 2; since then he has made 9 appearances in the intervening 6 seasons. That time gap has seen him become a proficient deep cover agent, so whenever he returns you never know what you'll get: the psychologist or the deep cover agent. And usually his appearances make for very good episodes (although some, like today, were just casual cameos); since
   That's pretty much what I've come away from this episode with: Anna needs to become a main cast member and Nate needs to return in a more regular (probably recurring) capacity. Because alongside a murder plot that didn't shout fresh, I couldn't think of anything but how these two are a benefit to a show that has gotten much too fond of itself.

   VIEWERS: 10.35m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 1.3
   (Golden Globes hit the ratings a little)

VERDICT: NCIS LA has stumbled upon a way to reboot its show, but with an already bloated cast and a winning formula you can expect it to prioritise ratings over quality writing. 8/10

Updates:-

• Brooklyn Nine-Nine will not be returning with new episodes until the 11th of April, almost a full 3 months from the time of this roundup's publication.
• Making History's premiere date has been revealed - 5th March.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

Hawaii Five-0 - Steve McGarrett: "Book 'em, Danno!"

LAST WEEK'S ROUNDUP: On-Season Week 17

NEXT WEEK'S ROUNDUP: (will be posted here when complete)

Final thoughts

So there we have Week 17. Expectations were high but not always delivered this week: MacGyver and NCIS LA are examples, with the former failing to continue a good arc and the latter criminally underusing a loved recurring character. But both came out with strong ratings nonetheless. Conviction's burn-off continued (with another good episode and shocking ratings), Incorporated ticked back up as a game-changing episode set the rest of the season up for a grand slam final 3 episodes, Elementary struggled without the crucial Sherlock-Watson dynamic in play and Hawaii Five-0's tearful goodbye to Max was everything you expected - maybe even a little too much so.
   Next week promises a lot from more of our favourite shows - and the 

Sam